Laptop Harddrives

Are laptop hard drives compatible with desktop? SInce they are both IDE.

I want to connect a spare laptop HD i have to the desktop via the a spare HD IDE cable I have.

I tried it once, the laptop drive needed a smaller cable than a regular one.

You can get a converter that allows you to plug a 2.5" drive in one end and a 3.5"-compatible IDE cable (and power supply, since 2.5" drives draw power over the same ribbon cable they use for data) into the other to get it working. They're not that expensive (under $10). Bear in mind, of course, that you'll need to be able to mount it somehow (you can buy a mounting cradle or fashion something yourself), and that 2.5" drives tend to be a little slower than 3.5" ones.

you'll need to be able to mount it somehow
I don't know, in the past when I've run out of places to stick drives I tend to pile them on the floor of the case :)

>>4
That's a little cruder than my suggestion of "fashion something yourself", maybe just getting some thin metal, bending it into a couple of squared-off "U" shapes and drilling some holes to make it fit a 3.5" drive bay...but whatever works for you. Or stops working... :)